The subject matter of U.S. Pat. No. 4,648,468, issued Mar. 10, 1987, is a portable, powered hand-held tool in which vibrations generated during operation are cushioned by the provision of embedding the barrel of a chipper, chisel, etc., in shock-absorbent material contained within a cavity that has a rigid wall forming an integral part of the rigid handle, whereby shock forces are materially isolated from the handle and thus from the user of the tool. In the patented structure, the barrel per se is adhered to the handle via the absorbent material, an assembly procedure that requries a certain amount of care and precision in assuring proper positioning of the barrel in the handle cavity.
The present invention provides an improvement over the patented structure by utilizing a hollow insert member within the cavity and surrounded by and adhered to the cavity wall by the absorbent material. The hollow member opens coaxially at the front of the handle and becomes available for receiving the barrel of the chisel. chipper, etc. Specifically, the interior of the hollow member is threaded to receive the externally threaded rear part of the barrel. The barrel is operative as a unit with the handle but becomes a separable rather than a captive part of the handle and has the advantage of enabling the interchangeability of various barrels with one handle, thus increasing the overall flexibility and utility of the tool. This feature also enables the provision of basic handles respectively provided with inserts or hollow members of various sizes for receiving barrels of various sizes. Still further, the relatively light-weight hollow member is easier to assemble to the handle and thus makes for more efficient and lower-cost manufacture.